“In the beginning, the gods created the Heavens and the World, and the world was a formless void, and darkness covered the face of the deep. But the darkness wasn’t empty. It was full of creatures, full of demons."
The Shadowvast (abyssal: Dubva) is a blackened realm where the faintest spark of light is quickly devoured by the unending darkness. It is a plane suffused with negative energy.
Many people believe the Shadowvast to be an empty expanse where the souls of the damned float away, never to be seen again. While this is partially true, in the case of the Black Fields, the realm has many distinguishing features that some may call interesting, and others call horrifying.
The realm is like a shattered mirror with multiple fractured realities happening at once. Beings that are themselves not infused with shadow have a Shadow Self that walks with them at all times. This Shadow Self is the chaotic ID.
Perhaps instead of a shattered reality, it is more about the plane being full of illusions. It's difficult to tell what is real and what is not especially if there are some things that are a combination of real and false. This is the opposite of the upper Plains search for truth whereas This Plane purposefully obscures the truth and Revels in lies
The environments here are decidedly unnatural. Whereas other planes May feature idyllic versions of material plane biomes, the regions of the Shadow vast are alien and frightening
Since it is a realm of Chaos in darkness it is also the realm of set and Apophis of Egyptian Mythos.
It is also jigoku as a source of Oni and Evil. Does this mean that the taint of rokegon is somehow connected to qlippoth?
is misunderstood as the plane of darkness, while it really symbolizes all things succumbing to death and entropy, even hope and light. He also notes that Mabar's coterminous phase should not mean that you'll accidentally stumble into the Endless Night simply by walking into a dark closet, and shadows won't crawl out from under your bed to kill you; the tiniest scrap of positive energy is enough to prevent a place from becoming a conduit to Mabar. Light is the most common source of positive energy, but a home full of love and joy is equally effective. However, a place steeped in desolation and decay, like the basement of a decrepit old mansion, could be very dangerous during that time.
The Shadowfell, also known as the Plane of Shadow, was one of the planes of existence in various cosmological models. Its purpose and characteristics evolved as new cosmologies were formulated. Other names for this plane included Shadowland,[3] the Demiplane of Shadow,[4] the Shadow Deep,[9] and simply Shadow.
It existed as sort of a counterpart to the Feywild, in the sense that it was a reflection, or "echo", of the Prime Material Plane. Unlike the Feywild, it was a bleak, desolate place full of decay and death.
Life on this plane does not revolve around the demons. They are the monsters here just as they are monsters other places. The Civilized races of The Shadow fear them as much as any other. They try to live their lives as best they can surrounded by death and destruction within an eternal night.
The surrounding planes are the ones with the most influence which include the prime material plane, the echoing, fire, ice, and Air. Shadowy priests devote themselves to war, dispassion, chaos, death, and fate.
The exarchs of shaydis are also extremely influential here. Direct powers of shadow and chaos.
Nearly 2,000 years ago the dark lord was a Scion of shadow. He sought to use demons to bolster his power. It was with his effort that the abyss was widened and more demons than ever poured out.
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Geography
“It is the toxic plane of darkness and power.
It is the hidden place that hates the light.
It is the frontier of worlds unknown.”
The plane is divided into different regions called Domains. Each domain is cut off from the other by a veil of mist. The Mists can ebb and flow and grow thin or thick. If the Miss grow too thick then they cannot be crossed. Sometimes domains are cut off from other domains for centuries.
Each domain is much like a floating island on a sea of mist. Each domain floats around freely like patches of ice in a Cold Lake. There's no telling what domains will border any other domain. Though the speed at which the domains shift tend to be quite slow enough for travelers to be somewhat certain of their destination.
Even the native inhabitants of the plane can never be 100% sure of the geography of the plane. Only the Vistani, masters of the mist, can know for certain their destination will be true.
The plane is cold even in the jungles. Everything is full of hatred. Even the ground you walk on is full of malevolence. The environment drains your energy. Saps your life. The best way to keep up your strength is by constantly killing and eating other creatures. The best source of drinkable liquid on the plane is the blood of the living.
Many parts of the plane are so dark that not even dark vision can penetrate it. It devours light. Where even fire and magical light can only illuminate so much. There are roaming spheres of annihilation that are sentient and hungry. Mobile black holes that devour everything nearby.
Mabar is a realm where no light shines. It is a world that is home to demons and the creatures that go bump in the night.[1]
On Eberron, one can be brought back after death as either an undead or as a deathless. Those that are undead are said to have been infused with the essence of Mabar, while deathless have been infused with the powers of Irian. There are those that worship the deathless of the Undying Court who wish to remove all undead from the world. These Deathguard will hunt down Mabar manifest zones, trying to sever their connection with the realm.[2]
On the flip side, priests of the Blood of Vol will also seek out manifest zones of Mabar, to build shrines and allow access to more powerful spells. In addition, a sect of druids called the Nightbringers also worship Mabar, and seek out manifest zones, especially the Gloaming.[3]
Mabar and Mabar manifest zones are also responsible for Mabar Crystals, inky black crystals that empower darkness spells.
The most striking and immediate impression a visitor to the Plane of Shadow experienced was the lack of color and light; no sun, moon, or stars adorned the vault of the inky black sky, and all things looked as if the color had leeched out, leaving nothing but black and white, which in the dimness were more like "dark black" and "light black". A light source only illuminated half the distance it normally would, flames and fires put out less heat,[12][16] and spells that dealt with light or fire were less predictable and prone to failure, whereas shadow spells were enhanced.[11][13][16] On the other hand, although it would not illuminate as far, any light source on the plane could be spotted at a distance of up to ten times its normal range of illumination, such was the contrast to the constant gloom, similar to a star in the night sky. Even a light source that only put out shadowy illumination, like a darkness spell or a lantern burning shadowlight oil, could be seen up to five times its range of illumination.[16]
Gravity and time were the same on the Shadowfell as on the Prime,[11] but because the Shadowfell was magically morphic (and divinely morphic in the realms of Shar and Mask)[15] the landscape was a dark, twisted echo of what existed on the Prime. Upon entering the Plane of Shadow, the local features were usually quite similar: casting shadow walk in a forest put you in a shadow forest; casting it under water dropped you in a similar body of water, etc. But from that starting point, the landscape diverged rapidly away from the familiar, and on subsequent visits from the same starting point it diverged in different ways, making mapping the Shadowfell a useless endeavor.[13][16][22] Landmarks were usually recognizable but altered in some bizarre way: buildings might be constructed in a different style, built with different materials, at a different location, and/or in any condition from dilapidated ruins to its normal appearance, for example, or otherwise strange and distorted.[12][16] Similar sites were sometimes called "shadow-analogues".
Due to the ever-changing landscape, the Plane of Shadow was subject to relatively frequent but very small earthquakes (called shadow quakes) that resembled an earthquake spell in an area about two hundred feet (sixty meters) in diameter. For those on the ground, damage was equivalent to a Prime earthquake, but shadow quakes could also disrupt the shadow walk spell and dump unfortunate travelers onto the Shadowfell in the middle of the disturbance at a place very likely unknown and far from their destination.[23]
Some areas on the Plane of Shadow seemed to have an affinity with the Negative Energy Plane and life-draining undead such as shadows, ghosts, and vampires. These "darkland" had a minor negative-dominant trait and unprotected visitors immediately felt the life force being sucked from their bodies—unless they exited the darkland quickly, all that was left of them was a pile of ash. Someone with protection from negative energy could stop and admire the utter desolation in an otherwise forlorn landscape, and perhaps make the acquaintance of the truly inimical undead. Thankfully, no natural vortices opened into darklands regions, preventing the unwary from stepping through into almost certain death, and keeping the creatures that thrived there from having easy access to other planes. Material Plane locations such as desecrated burial mounds, haunted battlefields, and necromantic foci frequently had a darkland echo on the Shadowfell.
Other less dangerous but quite unsettling echoes occurred in areas analogous to towns and cities in the Prime Material Plane. They were nothing more than mirages, but familiar faces and places seen through the macabre mirror of the Shadowfell could be very demoralizing. Structures might appear altered, dislocated, destroyed, or replaced entirely by something else. Mirages of the living had visages of distorted nightmares, but were still recognizable enough to give travelers a jolt of fear and revulsion.
Air, water, and food existed on this plane, supporting plants, animals, and some humanoids adapted to the shadow environment. Visitors could survive indefinitely if they were willing to endure thick, foul-smelling water, food that oozed dark blood, and a pervasive nip of cold in the air.[24] A visitor could never feel warm, would often hear or sense the presence of things that weren't there, and could never shake the feeling of being watched. It was a constantly unsettling place.[16] Over time, exposure to the Plane of Shadow altered living things, increasing various traits and abilities but also some vulnerabilities.[24] Emotions and the ability to experience them seemed to fade over time for those imbued with shadowstuff.[25]
The morphic nature of the Shadowfell could produce strange effects, mainly in areas like the Black Rift that were especially morphic,[26] and with events that had a particular affinity with the plane, like death. For example, in the Black Rift alone, a pile of bodies caused more skeletons to appear, until there were thousands.[27] More bizarre were the strange biers upon which dead bodies spontaneously appeared, apparently drawn from wherever they rested, anywhere in existence, only to disappear after a few seconds, presumably to wherever they'd come from.[28] Stalactites in a cave dripped ephemeral shadowstuff, which was reabsorbed into the plane rather than form a puddle. Even common mushrooms bore realistic humanoid faces, capable of twitching or blinking.[29] More significantly, forests of grasping tendrils sprouted from some surfaces and reached for passersby, similar to the black tentacles spell.[28]
A prison for dark lords? As dark Lords are inherently lawful, it is more appropriate for them to be imprisoned in a chaotic Realm
Abyss
Said to be infinite in depth, the windswept chasm that makes up the abyss is frightening to behold on its own. The horror of the plane is added with the uncountable number of demons that flood over its surface and fly its skies.
The thing known as the abyss is a giant hole punched through not only the reality of the plane but the reality of the Multiverse into a pit of qlippoth. This is the source of all qlippoth perhaps even the Titans themselves crawled up from this pit. Now the pit is known for birthing demons. What is the relationship between demons and qlippoth?
Alien energies emanate from this pit corrupting the realm around it. Even the goddess of chaos herself might be corrupted by this energy. Which might be why she seeks annihilation. Perhaps she seeks annihilation because she wants to destroy the abyss but most likely it is entirely selfish and nihilistic in nature.
The Abyssal realms are pockets in which the fabric of the Abyss has slowed its relentless, changing insanity to a near-reality pace. These places are often ruled by a demon lord, either thanks to the lord's own power over the area, or simply because demon lords are attracted to a place to build a fortress and armies. Some Abyssal realms have remained relatively unchanged for aeons and these are designated as anchored realms, or anchor realms.[3]
Inhabitants
The two primary races that inhabit the countless layers of the Abyss are the ancient qlippoth and the prolific demons, which act as metaphysical bookends to all the numerous races of the Outer Planes. The qlippoth are believed to be some of the most ancient, or perhaps the oldest races of the Great Beyond, while the demons are the youngest. The qlippoth had already existed for eons when the Abyss first revealed itself to the rest of the multiverse, while the demons were originally created by daemons from the souls of evil mortals. When the influx of evil and lawless souls began rising steeply, the demons grew beyond the daemons' ability to control, and are now the most prolific of all the fiendish races.[2]
Not all realms are so chaotic, however. The home realms of the demon lords seem to be relatively immune to the constant destruction and creation, though they change slightly in every "day" (for the Material Plane, as each realm can have its own sun or none at all). These anchored realms, or anchor realms,[2] may just be more static than the others, or the demon lords may themselves keep the realm from being overly changed.[citation needed]
There are many realms which are just as solid as those of the demon lords, which often serve as battlefields for demonic armies, whose masters fight against each other to gain more power. Even those that have not already been purposed for combat contain the demonic races, who could have been birthed from the plane itself or migrated there when it formed.[citation needed]
Darkstar
A horrific sphere called the Darkstar devours all light, sweeping the Abyss into perpetual darkness. This is the source of negative energy.
The Negative Energy Plane—also known as the Void,[1] Entropy's Heart, the Nothing, and the Final End[2]—sits at the metaphysical center of the Shadow Plane, in much of the same way as the Positive Energy Plane does for the Material Plane. The plane is considered to be the polar opposite of the Positive Energy Plane in the arcane tradition and complementary in the esoteric tradition.[3][2]
It is a place of annihilation and destruction, leaching life energy from all who come near it. A barren wasteland of emptiness with few surfaces, the Negative Energy Plane is the home of countless undead creatures, many of them intelligent and extremely powerful. In fact, the plane is the source from which all undead draw their power and un-life.[4][5][2]
Properties
The Negative and Positive Energy Planes, at top left, in the context of the River of Souls.
The plane is saturated with negative energy that drains life from beings that rely on positive energy, including mortals, within moments; most who arrive without magical protection or planar attunement immediately turn to ash and become wraiths. Food and natural materials, such as mundane cloth and leather, rot immediately, and metal rusts away within days. It is inherently dark—natural light sources go out on their own—and frigid. Gravity is subjective and directional, but movement is a matter of will more than physical force.[2]
Holy power and magical light tend to attract the attention of the plane's resident undead. Closer to the plane's heart, negative energy consolidates into twisted obsidian-like crystals.
The plane mostly consists of bleak emptiness. The few exceptions include elemental pockets, where the plane intersects with the Elemental Planes, as well as a number of unique features.[2]
Darklands
On the Plane of Shadow, patches of darkness exist that are even darker than the shadows themselves. Negative
energy infuses these places. Whether the negative energy
is bleeding over from the Negative Energy plane or it's
simply a byproduct of the high concentration of undead
shadows and other life-draining undead is unknown.
Darklands regions have the minor negative-dominant
trait. Living creatures that enter the darklands take 1d6
points of damage per round from negative energy and
crumble into ash if they reach 0 hit points or less. Spells
and magic items that protect against negative energy
function normally within the darklands.
Travelers to the Plane of Shadow can identify darklands
easily. They are more desolate and bleak than the
surrounding areas (which are themselves pretty bleak on
this plane). Plants are dead and desiccated from the long-
term effects of the negative energy.
Natural vortices from other planes do not open into
darklands regions, and spells or spell-like abilities opening
a portal from the Material Plane warn the traveler (usually
with a cold shiver down the spine) that a darklands region
lies ahead. Darklands often correspond to haunted
battlefields, unconsecrated graveyards, and lairs of
powerful necromancers on the Material Plane, as well as
any location dominated by undead.
The Shining Citadel
This legendary fortress mayor may not exist, but it's the talk of planar travelers everywhere. The legend contends
that the Plane of Shadow is artificial, created by a long-
forgotten creature with the power of the deity. Once a
mere demiplane, the Plane of Shadow has at its heart a
Shining Citadel of color and light. To power the citadel,
members of an order venerating the plane's creator sucked
the life, light, and color from the rest of reality. Thus was
the Plane of Shadow born. None have found the Shining
Citadel, but it is said that those who never return from a
visit to the deepest regions of the Plane of Shadow have
found it.
The Black Fields
Shadowed Fen
A horrifying forest of ancient evil. It is filled with cannibals and bar-lgura. It is home to the temple that leads to the prison.
Wall of Torment
Pit of Hate
Gossamer Misery
Made entirely of strands of spider webs, this horrific level is home to all manners of arachnid creatures.
Chaulssin
Located almost ten miles (sixteen kilometers) below the surface of northwest Faerûn, beneath the northernmost peak of the Rauvin Mountains,[46] this was originally a drow city that was captured by shadow dragons in the Year of Shambling Shadows, −221 DR. Under the influence of shadow dragons for hundreds of years, the city was slowly absorbed by the Plane of Shadow[47] until their overthrow in the Year of the Darkspawn, 634 DR.[48] Abandoned in the Year of the Splendid Stag, 734 DR,[49] the fringe of the Shadowfell continued to ebb and flow through streets and buildings filled with dangerous shadow creatures.[50] Chaulssin was reestablished in the Year of the Shadowkin Return, 1136 DR, by House Jaezred as a base for the shadow dragon–blooded drow assassins.[51][52]
Chaul'mur'ssin
This city was established on the Plane of Shadow by the inhabitants of Chaulssin after fleeing an advancing army from Menzoberranzan in 734 DR.[49] The Chaulssinyr hastily traveled through dangerous caverns until they found the abandoned lairs of their shadow dragon progenitors and claimed them, eking out an existence. Eventually the city thrived and became a power that demanded respect.[50]
Evernight
The dismal reflection of Neverwinter.[53] It was believed to be the dark version of least one city in every world in the Prime Material plane.[14]
Gloomwrought
The dark twin to Thultanthar (the Shade Enclave).[54]
Mulsantir
Travel between the Shadowfell and the Prime Material Plane was possible in certain places in Mulsantir at certain times of day. Shadow Mulsantir contained a Temple of Myrkul, in the place where a Shrine to Kelemvor stood on the Prime. Within this temple was found a portal leading to Kelemvor's domain, the Fugue Plane.[55]
Shadow Swamp
The Vast Swamp between Cormyr and Sembia had a Shadowfell counterpart, called the Shadow Swamp. Although the environment was similar in many ways, it was a great black swamp, where the water was dark and still and only moved sluggishly through the channels. Nevertheless, the landscape was different; there seemed to be more water than in the fast-growing Vast Swamp. Sites in the Vast Swamp had echoes here: the Lost Refuge in the material world had a counterpart in the so-called Shadow Citadel, which followed the same plan but was even more ruined. A portal called the Dusk Lord's Passage linked the two.[16] On the other hand, a flooded fissure that formed an ordinary lakebed in the Vast Swamp was reflected in an empty canyon in the Shadow Swamp, known as the Black Rift. Swamp water flowed in on all sides, yet the water at the bottom never rose and never seemed to drain out, an entirely unexplained phenomena of the plane. The Black Rift was especially morphic—although it remained more-or-less the same shape overall, local changes in terrain were extreme and bizarre. The interplay between the magical Weave and the Shadow Weave was especially malleable, a trait which attracted the followers of Shar.[26]
Sphur Upra
Located nine miles (over fourteen kilometers) below the surface of east Faerûn, between the surface nations of Mulhorand and Murghôm,[56] this city was established on the Shadowfell in −2954 DR by five gloaming families seeking security and community. After almost 3,500 years, they expanded their city by creating portals to the Material Plane in the Year of the Spitting Viper, 534 DR, and became a major trading post for goods between the two planes.[57]
Thultanthar (City of Shade)
This floating enclave of Netherese origin entered the Plane of Shadow just before Karsus's Folly brought down the empire in Year of Sundered Webs, −339 DR.[58] Over the centuries, its population acclimated to the new environment and became known as shades. In the Year of Wild Magic, 1372 DR, Thultanthar was brought back to the Material Plane and became known as the City of Shade.[59][60] The inhabitants then began the rebuilding of the Netherese empire.[61]
Xovaikain
It is noted that the plane has largely been tainted by Zon-Kuthon's imprisonment here long ago. Portions of the plane show his influence more strongly than others. While he is no longer imprisoned, Zon-Kuthon still makes his home on the Plane of Shadow[1] in a region known as Xovaikain.
Shadow Alexandria
Shadow Calori
Citadel Exhalus
Surrounded on all sides by the nothingness of the Neg-
ative Energy Plane, the Citadel Exhalus drifts through
the void. Overseen by a Doomlord of the Doomguard.
The Escarpment
cliffs on its metaphorical edge near the Material Plane where material worlds abut the Nothing. Cataracts of liquid entropy pour over parts of these cliffs, while the higher peaks are home to powerful outsiders.[2]
Chasm to Shadow
manifesting its border with the Shadow Plane as an impossibly deep ravine filled with shadows. The mixture of shadow and entropy produces a powerful, almost sentient malice that attracts passing fiends, drawing them into the Chasm's depths where they transform into nightshades.[2]
Nightwatch
A great rift called Nightcrawler Chasm snakes across the Plane of Shadow. Named for the nightshades said to haunt its depths, it is a terrible place, one best avoided. Strangely, this chasm is also the site of one of the plane’s largest cities, Balefire. Here, the dimly glowing lanterns create a haven for travelers, offering respite from the oppressive bleakness of the plane. Some, however, hate the light and stop at nothing to extinguish it.
About 1,000 feet down inside the chasm lies Nightwatch, a
Nightshade Covenant outpost. Given its remoteness, the depth of the chasm, and the things writhing in wicked madness far below, the Nightshaders are confi dent in their security. Those who would assault this outpost must fi rst contend with the terrain. The walls have regular handholds (Climb DC 10), but characters who do not have darkvision or a viable light source take a –5 circumstance penalty on their skill checks. It is far better to use fl y spells and similar effects.
Letherna
lies deep in the Shadowfell, fa r beyond the reach of most mortals. This bastion of the Raven Queen is seen only by the spirits of the dead and by the privileged retainers and bodyguards of the god of
death. Those loyal to the Raven Queen stand ready
to defend her citadel's frost-covered walls from any
threat.
The Bleak Paths
The desolate stretches of road and river where the
Shadowfell bleeds over into the world, known as the
Bleak Paths, allow travel to and from that dark realm.
The power of shadow and death invariably infuses
such locations, which are the sites of terrible crimes,
large-scale tragedies, or powerful rituals that channel
shadow magic.
Most of those who travel the Bleak Paths do so
by performing the rituals needed to access them. In
some cases, however, a traveler can stumble into the
Shadowfell along such a road without warning. Such
sudden disappearances might coincide with the man-
ifestation of undead or shadow monsters in an area,
and could depend on the nature of the event that cre-
ated the I3leak Path.
One of the most infamous Bleak Paths lies within
the Nent ir Vale, on an overgrown track that crosses
the Gray Downs. In ages past, a hill clan war chief
walking in the company of his bride was set upon by
the chief's brother, eager to seize control of the tribe.
In a deadly ambush, the ch ief and his beloved were
cut down by a hail of arrows as they walked hand in
ha nd along the path.
To this day, travelers that follow this ancient track
are cautioned to never make physical contact with
their companions as they walk. Legends tell of how
those who do so near the location of the ambush
are pulled into the Shadowfell as they inadvertently
mimic the doomed couple's last steps.
The spiritual imprint that death makes on an
area is the key to accessing a Bleak Path. As such,
the halflings' mastery oflore and secrets allows
the ir scouts and clan leaders to accumulate untold
numbers of such keys. This information, along with
maps showing the locations ofllleak Paths across
the lands in which hal flings travel, is greatly trea·
sured by the clans that possess it.
The lore of the Bleak Paths is concealed within
otherwise mundane-looking maps. Va nishing ink
made visible only by the light of a full moon, secret
symbols woven into a map's decorative borders, and
codes carefully worked into place names and histo·
ries protect this precious secret.
Misc
Floating Islands rent from the Escarpment by erosion, float into the void until they eventually crumble away and are often claimed by powerful beings.[2]
An array of planets consumed by the void, including Fallen Duromak, known as the Dead Worlds and haunted by the undead.[2]
Crystalline knots of negative energy that are home to, and birth, the sceaduinars.[2]
Dawn spirals, termini of black holes in the Material Plane, formed by fragments of matter drawn through the celestial bodies.[2]
Entropy sheets that manifest pure destruction and which often obscure ancient monuments and sealed gates.[2]
- Shadow Romania
- Shadow England
- Shadow Arabia (Har’Akir)
- Shadow China
- Shadow Scandiavia
- Shadow Mexico
- Shadow West Africa
- Shadow South Africa
Shadow links
Travelers typically access the Plane of Shadow with spells or permanent portals.
The most common way to visit the Plane of Shadow is to
use the shadow walk spell for fast travel from one point to another on the Material Plane. The spell moves its targets
up to seven miles per 10 minutes on the Plane of Shadow,
regardless of one's normal speed. Such travel happens
entirely on the Plane of Shadow, so travelers don't see
much of the intervening terrain on the Material Plane.
Ending the spell returns the travelers to the Material
Plane, again in a shadowy location if possible.
There are also vortices between the Plane of Shadow and
the Material Plane that function randomly and have
variable destinations. These intermittent portals to the
Plane of Shadow are usually Medium-size and last for 1d6
days before fading. The frequency of these portals is
unknown, for many may appear, last for a few days, then
fade without anyone noticing, much less using, the portal.
Like any vortex, spells and unattended objects (such as
arrows) can pass from one plane to another. It is as if the
Plane of Shadow itself is boiling, and the bubbles rise and
burst on its borders with the Material Plane.
These random vortices only appear in areas of shade or
darkness on the Material Plane. If they appear within a
solid object, no transfer between the planes is possible. But
vortices that reach open space on the Material Plane are
useful for Plane of Shadow natives who want to infest the
Material Plane.
The shadow walk spell is in many ways a creation of such
natural vortices, one at the beginning of the journey and
one near the end. Larger vortices exist, though they are
rare. A particularly massive vortex could swallow an entire
castle or city, transplanting it to the Plane of Shadow
permanently.
Visitors on the Plane of Shadow who look back through
a vortex onto the Material Plane see the world with black
and white reversed (like a photographic negative). Because
vortices open onto dark regions of the Material Plane, they
are obvious on the Plane of Shadow because the darkness
of the Material plane looks bright in comparison to the
Plane of Shadow.
Inhabitants
As hierarchies are rare, there are no real "factions", but society can be basically separated into three groups;
- demons
- undead
- the tribes.
The Shadowfell was home to a mysterious form of undead called shadows,[19] other "shadow" creatures such as the shadow mastiff[67] and shadow dragon,[68] and a race of humanoids known as shades.[69] In addition to those, there were numerous other inhabitants, such as communities of shadar-kai, Shadovar, and caligni.
Probably the most dominant race of beings on the Plane of Shadow were the shades—ancestors of ancient Netherese humans who resided on the plane in their floating city for centuries and acquired many abilities from immersion in shadow essence.
Other creatures that were either native to the plane or attracted to it included bodaks,[23] cloakers,[23] darkweavers,[62] ephemera of all kinds,[62][72] veserabs,[73] liches,[13] nightshades,[13][23][74] shadar-kai,[62] shadurakul,[62] spectres,[13] and wraiths.[13][23] Occasionally, animals and monsters would wander or fall into a vortex to the Shadowfell and become trapped there. Those that survived eventually took on shadow-given abilities, carved out a niche in the ecosystem, and preyed on whatever attracted their attention. Examples included apes, basilisks, bears, owlbears, rats, umber hulks, and wolves.[23] Such creatures could give rise to dark creatures, shadowy counterparts of natural creatures.[75][76]
Shadow demons also inhabited this plane. These fiends were responsible for the creation of the race known as krinth, having interbred with Netherese slaves.[77]
Shadow sea serpents were not native to the Plane of Shadow but were bred there by the Shadovar, crossing warm-blooded carnivorous orcas with vile shadow creatures. These serpents hunted in packs both in the sea and on land.[78]
Especially during the period between the Spellplague and the Second Sundering, the Shadowfell became also prominently populated with dead creatures such as ghosts, specters, and other undead who for whatever reason refused to leave the Shadowfell and continue on to the Fugue Plane.[5]
Just as the lands of Golarion have a twisted reflection on the Shadow Plane, the people do as well. The fetchlings are descended of humans who became trapped on Plane of Shadow long ago. They have become infused with its essence and have yellow eyes and no pigmentation in their skin. Fetchlings often serve as middlemen for planar travelers and are the most populous race in their realm.[4]
In many people's minds, the Plane of Shadow has very strong ties with undead and for good reason. At the core of the Plane of Shadow resides the Negative Energy Plane which causes the creation of many of the undead that exist within the Shadow Plane[1] including nightshades.[5] Undead are not the only creatures found on the Shadow Plane. Other living inhabitants include shadow giants[6] and the infamous velstracs.
Incorporeal undead creatures, including the plane's most feared nightshades, dominate the plane.[5] Corporeal undead, such as liches and graveknights, also travel to the plane and meet or reside in protected settlements like Malikar's Keep.[2][6]
While the Plane of Shadow is not evil in and of itself, it is home to a wide variety of foul creatures that hate the light and the living. The best known denizen of the plane is the
shadow, an undead creature that sucks the strength from
adventurers on either the Material Plane or the Plane of
Shadow.
The Plane of Shadow has native versions of many of the
plants and animals found on the Material Plane, but the
shadow versions are twisted, dark variants.
More dangerous monsters such as the shadow mastiff
and the nightshade call the Plane of Shadow home as well.
Chapter 9 details two new denizens of the plane, the
ecalypse and the umbral banyan, and a third creature, the
dusk beast, often found near vortices to the Plane of
Shadow.
There are numerous stories of castles and entire cities
that have been sucked up by the Plane of Shadow over the
years. Some still survive, but they have been warped by the
insidious, toxic nature of the Plane of Shadow. This
toxicity, described in the Features of the Plane of Shadow
section below, only manifests after decades on the Plane of
Shadow. It grants strange abilities and inhuman attributes
to those infected by shadow's touch.
The most prominent natives of the plane are sceaduinars[7] and sceazirs,[2] who spawn from crystalline knots of negative energy that form strange angles.[5][2] Oblivions also coalesce from the entropy that courses through the plane.[2]
Other beings who visit or live in the plane include daemons, at least one danava, devourers, hunduns, umbral dragons, and void-ravaged survivors who have acclimated to the void. A few movanic devas voluntarily brave the plane as front-line defenses against its inhabitants.[2]
Tribes
- Fetchling; N
- shadar-kai; N
- wispling; N
- Wayang; N
- Vistani; N
- Xvart
- Caligni; CN or CE / LE
- Death Giant; NE
- Krinth; CE
- fiendish drow; CE
- Pitspawn; CE
These tribes eke out as much existence as they can. They are one of the only creatures in the plane that are capable of constructing not only buildings but civilization itself. However no matter how impressive or meaningful any structure is it will eventually be entirely destroyed and left in ruin by marauding demons.
The entire plane is covered in scattered ruins of civilizations great or small that have been utterly destroyed by demons. In a never-ending cycle of creation and destruction
Some civilizations are a part of a shattered reality where they are simultaneously destroyed and preserved
Gloom golems are made on the plane of Mabar.
Undead
Nightshades
Necropolitans are a civilization of undead.
Shadows are abundant on this plane. It's very likely that any non-outsider who dies is risen again as a shadow.
Devourers are a major present threat.
bodak
Wraith
Namorrodor
necronaut
vasuthant
Strigoi
Elementals and outsiders
Owb, NE
Nihiloi; CN
Gloomwing; N
D'ziriak; N
Shae; N
Khayal
Petitioners; The mutilated. The mutilated petitioners of the Shadow Plane are covered in bleeding wounds. Due to torture by Velstracs.
Shadow elemental
Ephemera
Dark creature
Shadow creature
ENTROPIC CREATURE
shadow mastiff
Shadow dragon
trillochs
Shadowgarm
Shadow jelly
Void ooze
negative energons known as the xeg-yi.
Fiends
Demons like the kastighur and shadow demon
Demodand
yugoloth
barghest
succubus
Draegloth
Many great old ones are imprisoned within the shadow stuff of the plane from the creation of the universe. Back when the gods did war against the Eldritch evils.
Organizations
Nightshade Covenant
The Nightshade Covenant opposes the light and its presence on the Plane of Shadow. Consisting of drow exiles, shadar-kai, dark ones, and undead, its factions threaten to tear the group apart.
Tenebrous Cabal
The Tenebrous Cabal is a powerful organization governing the practice of shadow magic. In the Bleak Academy, it trains apprentices and works to perfect their understanding of this unusual form of magic.
Black Cult of Ahm
Built on the lore of the Black Scrolls of Ahm (see page 100), this organization is devoted to recovering all the writings of Tulket nor Ahm that remain in the universe and to expanding its own holdings of demonic lore. Though the Black Cult of Ahm is first and foremost a scholarly organization, its leaders recognize that adventurers of all kinds are as important to the cult as researchers and loremasters because of the dangers inherent in the acquisition of demonic lore. Indeed, cultists must often journey to the far corners of the world and beyond to retrieve the knowledge they seek.
DISCIPLE OF RAZAUNDRA
You have made your warlock's pact with the shadow
demon Razaundra, a creature of unmatched anger
and rage. Once a powerful demon in service to Lolth,
Razaundra forges pacts with ambitious warlocks,
teaching them to control and channel their anger. In
the hands of her disciples, rage becomes a force as
deadly as any magic, and Razaundra's shadow warlocks can lace their curses with pure fury. You have learned to channel and manipulate the power of rage.
Doomguard
Members of the Doomguard believe that the multiverse is slowly falling apart, and they delight in its inevitable destruction. They are often nicknamed “sinkers.” The ultimate leaders are the doomlords, who gain great powers of entropy and destruction.
Undead cult
Undead hunters
Demon hunters
Phenomena
Shadowstuff
Known as "shadowstuff",[30] the material of the Shadowfell could be manipulated by illusionists to form semi-real monsters[31] and quasi-real evocations[32] that were still effective (to a lesser degree) even if the target successfully disbelieved the illusion.
Shadowgate
Another tool of illusionists was the shadow well spell, which could turn a creature's shadow into a temporary gateway into the Shadowfell. If successful, the victim was sucked into the Shadowfell through his or her shadow and spent a few moments in a pocket realm (a very tiny demiplane attached to the Shadowfell) being terrorized by dark phantasms. No physical harm resulted from this spell, but mental and emotional trauma resulting in a fear response was possible.
An unsuccessful attempt to build a gate to the Shadowfell could result in what was termed a failed Shadow Gate. A being that stepped through one was taken only momentarily to the Plane of Shadow, but in that moment a "seed of shadow" was implanted in their flesh. This could cause their flesh to be subsumed by shadow, and they would see it mist away into darkness. Many died, reduced to bare skeletons, but those who survived acquired the powers of a dark creature.
The special and unique nature of this plane caused not only cosmologists to speculate about its origins, but visitors and planar travelers as well. Some believed the Plane of Shadow had spontaneously formed as a demiplane out of the Ethereal Plane.[4]
However, most cosmologists and planewalkers with a sense of adventure liked to talk about the legend of the Shining Citadel. Briefly, the legend postulated that the Plane of Shadow was once bright and colorful like the Material Plane, but at some point in the distant past a mysterious group who worshiped the plane's creator took all of the light, color, and most of the life-force from the rest of the plane and concentrated it into a mighty citadel. One would think that a structure containing most of the energy from an entire plane of existence would be hard to miss, but no one has ever found the Shining Citadel, except perhaps, as the legend states, those who venture into the deepest parts of the Plane of Shadows and never return.
A theory bandied about among sages stated that the Underdark was bottomless because it eventually became the Plane of Shadow. The only evidence supporting this hypothesis was that permanent portals to the Shadowfell were increasingly common the deeper one delved.[45]
Aszite and druchite
The twin ores of aszite and druchite are found only on the Shadow Plane. These ores are highly sought after for structural construction, as well as for their use in enhancing armor and weapons.
The navy-blue ore known as aszite is often used to reinforce buildings. While aszite cannot be properly worked into weapons, it can be added in the form of veinlike reinforcements to armor, where it absorbs and amplifies certain unique magical properties.
Abyssal bloodiron
Nightcrystal
This inky black crystal, dark as obsidian and slightly translucent, fills certain regions of the Shadowvast. Used as metamagic components for nethermancy.
